A/N: Sorry, had a busy week with work and what not. More to enjoy. Have fun.

Once again Sokka found himself moving through the night. Above him shined the moon, full and bright amongst the deep black of the void. Though it did take away from some of his camouflage, the Water Tribe warrior felt it good luck to have Yue on his side. Once again he was wearing his black outfit, and it felt good to be in action.

Sokka smiled as he slid down the roof of a building on to the darken street below. Its times like this Sokka felt alive… free.

After his encounter with someone so entrenched in his past, Sokka needed that high that came from fighting criminals. He needed that euphoric feeling that came with risking his life, and with throwing another bad guy in jail.

The docks were normally alive with activity in the day time. Wooden hulled ships of the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes, as well as steel hulled ships of the Fire Nation would pull in and out of the busy harbor off loading goods and supplies before taking on more cargo. But at night, the ships rested gently at their berths with the sound of water lapping on their hulls or the ice docks.

The teen slid behind a stack of boxes with the Fire Nation emblem on it, and peer around the corner. Two Civil Defense waterbenders stood, talking about the recent ice ball competition, right next to the entrance to the inn. They must have been patrolling the docks, and took a moment to stand in the light that the inn provided. Pulling his head back, Sokka began to organize a method to get in the inn without being caught or noticed.

Regardless of the fact the Shadow brought criminals to justice for the local Civil Defense Force, vigilante justice was illegal in the Water Tribes. The idea being a civilized nation only needed its police force, not some thugs running around the streets. Regardless of the fact it was illegal, there seemed to be a mutual understanding. If the Shadow delivered criminals alive to the Civil Defense Stations, the Civil Defenders wouldn't investigate into his identity. Granted, if seen at night, guards were still ordered to attack and apprehend on sight.

Sokka reached into his jacket and pulled out a small metal sphere that was only an inch in diameter. Attached to it was a cord, something Sokka pulled straight out, before chucking it towards a particularly flammable looking stack of straw. A few seconds after it landed, there was pop, followed by a bang as the small device detonated. The two Civil Defenders heard the commotion and saw the fire. Moving quickly, they ran over to contain the fire.

It was all Sokka would need.

The spheres were an invention of his that he had come up with in his time at the Republic City. Two gels that sat side by side were separated by a thin piece of rice paper. Pulling the string would cause the gels to mix. After a certain time, they would heat to a point where they would ignite. Sokka made sure they weren't powerful enough to do too much damage. He didn't like destroying things needlessly.

Sokka moved quietly into the inn, and up a set of ice stairs to the upper floor.

He never did like being inside, especially where it was well lit. But there had been reports that a minor lieutenant who once served in the Fire Nation army was hiding here. Normally, Sokka wouldn't have done anything about it. He could not blame solders for following the orders of their superior. But this man supported the Imperialist cause after the fall of Phoenix Lord Ozai, and ran weapons into Republic City before fleeing when his treachery had been discovered by the local authorities.

Sokka found himself in a hall way with multiple rooms on either side. Each door way had a thick curtain that was drawn across its arch, giving the renter of the room privacy. Sokka quickly discovered the room that the man was reportedly staying in, and slipped through the curtains. The slob of a man lay in the middle of fur bed, with what appear to be a prostitute lying next to him. Both were out cold, and Sokka assumed it had to do with the various bottles of Fire Wine that were scattered around the room.

Moving with a grace that nobody would have ever thought would have come from the younger Sokka; he quickly brought a rag in his pocket over the Imperialist's nose. The man awoke suddenly, and was about to flail when the drug drenched rag over powered his body. The man's eyes drooped and soon he was out again.

He looked over to the young prostitute before frowning. She reminded him of his sister. Her dark skin was similar, as was the hair; though hers was shorter. This girl was also a little bit rounder in the face. But none the less, the young prostitute did indeed remind him of his only sister.

Mentally cursing himself, he became frustrated with the fact that Ty Lee had found him. Just seeing the beautiful Fire Nation acrobat/fighters face brought a rush of suppressed memories to the surface. It was thoughts like these that the Shadow could do without.

Hefting the big man onto a shoulder, Sokka moved him out to the hallway and laid him up against the wall. There was one thing he had to do before he left. Walking back into the room, Sokka drew his sword and quickly cut down all the candles, leaving only the moon light to illuminate the room.

He whispered to the prostitute, "Hey!"

She awoke with a start, and looked around. When she recognized the Shadow, she slid back and pulled up the covers up to her wide eyes in order to her naked body.

"T-t-the S-Shado-ow." She stuttered.

Sokka's face was hidden by the darkness that cut through the room, leaving only his brilliant expressive eyes to be seen.

"You have more too live for," He said in a deep voice, "I don't want to see you in this profession again."

She nodded her head worriedly, and cuddled a little deeper into the bed.

Just like that, Sokka disappeared into the Shadows and moved through the hallway to grab the drugged Ex-Fire Nation Lieutenant. Once again hefting the heavy man onto his shoulder, Sokka moved quickly and quietly down the stairs.

He saw the two Civil Defenders just finish bending water onto the last few flames right outside, so he gently placed the Imperialist on the ground. Reaching into his coat, he pull a pre made note, and tied it around the man's neck. Just as soon as he was done, the Civil Defenders turned back to see his shape against the light of the inn's lobby.

There was a moment in confusion in their faces, before they realized who was at inn's door. "Freeze, Shadow!" One yelled, while he began to bend a stream of water to lash out at the black figure.

Sokka turned and headed back up the stairs before the guards were in range to use their water whips. Drawing his space sword, Sokka began to hack and slice at any candle within range. One by one, the flames went out, and soon the hall that he had just run down was black. He picked one of the random rooms and, with a prayer to spirits that it was empty, heaved his body though the curtains before the guards came up to the stairs.

The universe, of course, was not on his side.

He barreled into a soft body that he recognized instantly as Ty Lee. It appears she had risen to see what the commotion was. Lucky for Sokka, she had her back turned to him when he ran the girl over. Picking himself off of her before she had a chance to look at him, or worse, use her chi blocking, he sprinted to the other side of the room and sliced the window open with his sword. Throwing himself out of the shattered ice window, Sokka found himself landing on a next door ice roof.

Behind him he her Ty Lee call after him, "Shadow! WAIT!"

Using his sword as a means to power himself up the slick roof, Sokka moved as quickly as he could from the inn.

Suddenly he heard light foot steps behind him and he dared a glance over his shoulder. Ty Lee had managed to follow him out the window and up the roof. Though she was missing her cloak, and it seemed she was having an easier time over the ice than he was. He cursed her, not in the mood to deal with the Fire Nation girl.

"Please, Mr. Shadow, wait!" She yelled after him.

And why the hell was chasing him?

Sokka dug his sword into the icy street and used it to catapult himself around a corner. A few seconds later Ty Lee made an attempt to make the same turn but lost her footing. She instead used the wall she was sliding towards to push herself in the right direction. Sokka made another sharp turn using his sword and slipped out of her view. Ty Lee, planning accordingly this time, ran in a sharper arc as not to lose her traction. But what she did not expect was the Shadow to be waiting right around that corner. Trying to back pedal, Ty Lee lost traction and fell on her back onto the icy road. She skid to a stop next to the Shadow, and before she could make a move, she felt cold steel up against her throat.

A little fright might keep her from chasing again, Sokka had hoped.

Ty Lee felt her heart beat against her chest out of control, and she found herself taking small shallow gasps of air. She knew in an instant that she was at the mercy of whoever was holding the blade gently against her neck. Moonlight spilled across her face, as well as the dark sword. Shadow's face, on the other hand, was completely obscured by darkness.

Damn irony.

"Shadow," She gasped, "Im not here to hurt you… o-o-or arrest you."

Sokka looked down at her curiously, and was happy for the shadows that covered his face. Ty Lee's eyes were wide and she looked awful cold. In her rush to chase him through the streets of the Northern Water Tribe, she was only wearing her normal street clothes without her heavy winter cloak.

"Fire Lord Zuko, and the Avatar have heard about your skills." She whispered quietly, "Your name is feared by Imperialists in every city you have been in." Ty Lee tried harder to see his face, "They sent me to request your help." She said finally.

Sokka's realized that was why Ty Lee was in the Northern Water Tribe. Finding the Shadow was what her mission was the entire time. Other things began to click. Before she recognized him at the bar, she was looking for an older warrior that would agree with his alter-egos practices. Generally it was the warriors that served in the Great War that voiced their biggest support for him.

He chuckled when everything came together, when everything started to make sense. Ty Lee misinterpreted this and began to breathe deeply again, "Please don't hurt me." She asked quietly.

"Ty Lee," Sokka said in the dark, before removing the blade from her throat. He leaned down so she could see his face, and his wide smile, "I'm not going to hurt you."

For the second time in a day, Ty Lee was caught completely off guard.

~AJF